Government Benefits Available to Arkansas Citizens

ARKids First provides health insurance coverage for more than 70,000 Arkansas children who otherwise might have gone without.
ARKids First has expanded and will now offer two coverage options. ARKids A offers low income families a comprehensive p...

Head Start is a Federal program that promotes the school readiness of children from birth to age five from low-income families by enhancing their cognitive, social, and emotional development. Head Start programs provide a learning environment that su...

The Home Energy Assistance Program helps low-income households with home energy costs by administering Regular Assistance and Crisis Intervention Programs. Each program provides financial assistance to eligible households with a one-time per year pay...

Medicaid is a program that helps pay for medically necessary medical services for needy and low-income persons. It uses state and Federal government money. The Department of Human Services (DHS) runs the Medicaid program in Arkansas. Medicaid and Med...

The Arkansas School Breakfast and Lunch Program is available to public and private nonprofit schools and residential childcare institutions serving children of high school age and younger. Residential childcare institutions must be licensed and opera...

The Arkansas Special Milk Program provides milk to children in schools, childcare institutions and eligible camps that do not participate in other Federal child nutrition meal service programs. Schools that participate in the National School Lunch or...

The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) provides supplemental foods, nutrition education and referrals to health care, at no cost, to low-income pregnant, breastfeeding and postpartum women, infants, and chil...

The Arkansas Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) provides nutritious meals and snacks to children during the summer months. This Federally funded food service program helps children who live in eligible areas receive the same high quality meals during...

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) helps people with low income get the food they need for good health. SNAP benefits are used in place of cash to buy food. Most people must spend some cash along with their SNAP benefits to buy enou...

The Transitional Employment Assistance (TEA) program helps economically needy families with children under the age of 18 become more responsible for the support of their families. The TEA program is Arkansas' welfare reform program under the Federal ...

The Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) is the nation's largest residential energy efficiency program. Its mission is to insulate the dwellings of low-income persons (particularly the elderly, persons with disabilities, families with children, hi...